In Praise of Our Mother's Maker

The Message of the Cross

Who is Jesus

Wise and the Foolish Builders

God and Civil Authority

        In the world we live in today, it is common place to speak evil of the government and its leaders; especially if they are a member of the opposing party that you are a member of. In many circles it is common to take to the streets in protest of the government and its leaders. Many times, these protests lead to violence, looting, destruction of businesses, and of course murder. In fact, many groups encourage people through social media to do these despicable things. Many Christians support these actions, believing God has given them authority to do so. Well, thankfully this is easy to prove or disprove. As always, let's turn to God as our final authority.

       Many of the protests we see today are because people hate our president. Now I am not here to show support for him or to say you have to like him. Of course you don't have to like the president or support him, however, God tells us how we should treat our leaders. (Exodus 22:28) Clearly states that we are not to curse him, but respect him. The Bible does not tell us we must vote for the man, but respect his authority as long as he is in office. There are no passages found saying anything different.

       Ecclesiastes chapter 8 takes it even further. In verse 3, Solomon says that we should not take a stand against our rulers, even if it is against an evil thing! Christians are not to be in the streets protesting or committing violence! In America, we protest by going to the ballot box. As we have seen, the protests, both peaceful and violent, have done nothing to change things. In fact, it can be argued that it makes things much worse. We can see this in cities such as Portland and Los Angeles today.

       In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus again emphasizes that we are to respect governing bodies. He says in (Matthew 22:17-21) to "render unto Caesar what is Caesar's". He never states that we should rise up in protest or fight against the ruling power. Why is that? Because God has the ultimate authority and we should put our trust in Him. Leaders will come and go, but He lasts forever. Lean on Him. Paul continues this thought in Romans 13:1-8 when he says we must submit to our government; that is to obey their laws to keep peace. We should be thankful that we live in a country where we have an opportunity to change our leaders every 4 years.

       There are a few other verses in scripture that deal with civil authorities and governing bodies (1 Tim. 2:1-2; Titus 3:1; 1 Pet. 2:10-17), but they all agree we must obey our leaders and respect them. It is not Christian to take to the streets in protest, or even on social media to say horrible things or call him evil names. We need to act like Christians at all times. Maybe the best example to give is the apostle Paul. While he was falsely arrested and brought to trial, he was given the opportunity to defend himself. He was a Roman after all, which meant he should have been free to go. He could have railed against the Jewish leaders who were bringing these charges against him. Yet he took that moment instead to teach about Christ. This is the example that is set before us! Stay calm, because things will change eventually.

Security in an Insecure World

       What can the gospel do in a world filled with so much turmoil and trouble? In Psalm 60:2, the Lord said this: "You have made the earth tremble; you have broken it; heal its breaches, for it is shaking." Our personal world has been shaken by divorce, domestic abuse, abortion, wars and crime, riots in the streets. We live in an age of police and metal detectors in schools, intimate searches in airports, and mountains of government regulations. All of this seems to prove one thing; people do not trust people to do right.

       People want to hear "security", whether truth and facts are on their side or not. For instance, during the Persian Gulf War in 1991, Iraqi Information Minister, Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf said this: "We are in control. They (Americans) are in a state of hysteria. Losers, they think that by killing civilians and trying to distort the feelings of the people they will win. I think they will not win." Most Iraqi's heard this and believed it, believing the Iraqi army would win, and they would be secure. They were comforted by the lies because it made them feel secure.

       Satan uses the same tactics in trying to make people feel secure by lying. Gen. 3:4 "Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die". He also falsely states that guardian angels will protect you from the dangers of life, or that godliness is a means of gain. 1 Tim. 6:5-6 "Useless wranglings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. From such withdraw yourself. Now godliness with contentment is great gain." Satan also tries to convince people that there will be no Judgment Day. Acts 17:30-31 "Truly these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead." Because people only see "surface" security, they completely ignore the truth spoken by God's Holy Word. John 8:44-47 tells us there is no truth in the Devil.

       We can see how the world today uses these tactics as well. T.V. shows like The Bachelor, Married at First Sight, and Wife Swap, tells people you can have a relationship without really knowing someone. But God says this in John 4:17-19; "The woman answered and said, 'I have no husband'. Jesus said to her, 'You have well said I have no husband, for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly. The woman said to Him, 'Sir, I perceive you are a prophet." The only secure relationships are those grounded in love as God intended it to be (Matt. 19:1-10; Col. 3:18-25).

       Politicians in government control so much of how we live our lives. During campaign cycles, they try to scare voters by saying the opposite party will not make the country secure. But God's Word says this in Rom. 13:1 "Let every soul be subject to governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God". In Acts 5:29 we read that we ought to obey rather than man. All government programs and medical schemes that obscure God's hand from the people's sight are Devil-centered and not God-centered.

       Insurance companies of course survive on telling people they are not secure in any part of their lives. They encourage, and at times force you to buy insurance on material things. But God's Word says this in Luke 12:15: "And he said to them, 'Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things He possesses."

       Religiously, some mistakenly use wars and rumors of wars to signal the end of the world. 'Once saved always saved' to teach a 'security of the soul'. Material prosperity to secure one's spirituality and God's blessing. "Heroic deaths" to secure salvation in eternity, and worshipping God to entertain man.

       However, God's Word says: The end and Judgment will come unexpectedly (1 Thess. 5:1-4). Practicing righteousness (obedience) makes one born again (1 John 2:29; Rom. 16:25-27). Material gain is NOT godliness (1 Tim. 6:5-10), not dying for someone else, but approaching Christ's death for one's own self gives hope in eternity (John 15:12-14, Heb. 5:8-9). Spirit and truth rule. John 4:24 "God is spirit, and those that worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." Maybe the best way to end this discussion is by Col 3:16-17: "Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."

     

The day of the Lord From 1 and 2 Thessalonians

       1 and 2 Thessalonians deals much with the 'Day of the Lord' and what the meaning of this wonderful and terrible day. There are many false doctrines and misunderstandings of these two wonderful epistles written by Paul. By the context of the two books, even the Thessalonians had misgivings and misunderstanding of what the Day of the Lord entailed. As always, the truth of God's Word answers all false teachings.
       The New Testament refers to the final day as the Day of the Lord and the Second Coming (Heb. 9:28), and it is important to understand these two terms refer to the same time. Paul said the Day would come like a thief in the night (1 Thess. 5:2), just as Jesus said of the second coming (Matt. 24:42-44). This is also an important item to note, but more on that later. The resurrection will take place at the 'coming of the Lord' (1 Cor. 15:23), and John 6:44 says this will happen on 'the last day', both showing these two days are one and the same.
       Even though the terms 'Day of the Lord' and 'Second Coming' are synonymous with each other, this doesn't mean that every time the Bible uses the term 'coming', that this refers to the second coming. For instance, in Matthew 10:23 and 16:28, when speaking of the establishment of the church, in Matthew 24:27 when speaking of the destruction of Jerusalem, and elsewhere. Again, it is important to understand the difference in these terms, for many try to intermingle them, therefore confounding the issue at hand.
       One major concern of many on this topic, is the belief that a rapture will occur before the coming of the Lord. This will be followed by a seven year period of tribulation, which at the end of that, we will see the return of our Lord to establish an earthly kingdom in Jerusalem (an earlier post written on this blog dealt with the establishment of the kingdom as already occurring). As far as the rapture is concerned, first of all we need to be very clear, there is no word in scripture as rapture. Many people want to add this term to scriptures and prophecy, but by doing so it would violate Revelation 22:18-19, which states that nothing should be added or taken away from the Word of God.
       The rapture is widely known as the taking of the saints to heaven while leaving the unrighteousness here on earth. Many will point to 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 as key to this belief. However, when studying this passage, it appears to be speaking about the righteous only. Just because the unrighteous are not mentioned, does not give men the right to add their own thoughts and beliefs when something is absent. James Meadows, a longtime evangelist, graduate of Freed-Hardeman, Union University and Harding Graduate School, as well as former columnist for the Gospel Advocate magazine, wrote the following:
               "First, this text is not discussing both the wicked and the righteous. Second, the text
                is discussing those that are asleep in Jesus (vv. 14-16) and those that are alive in Christ
                (vv. 16,17). Third, 'the dead in Christ shall rise first' (v. 16) does not refer to their rising
                before the wicked dead, but to their being raised before the righteous living are caught
                up. After they are raised, both are 'caught up together' (v. 17). Fourth, other verses show
                that both the righteous and the wicked will be raised at the same time (John 5:28-29).
                Fifth, it teaches that we will be caught up to be with the Lord forever, not seven years."
       Further, 2 Thess. 2:8 shows us that the two resurrections will happen at the same time. It is man that has added this thought of leaving the wicked only for a long period of time. Look at what Christ Himself said in John 5:28-29, "Marvel not at this: for the hour cometh, in which ALL that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; AND they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgement." I think we can all agree that Jesus would not try to confuse or mislead us, but teach us exactly the truth! He said both would be raised, not at different times.
       Many believe, that 1 Thessalonians 4:16 explains that the righteous will rise and leave the wicked to fend for themselves against the the Anti-Christ. This, however, is taken completely out of context. When we read the whole passage (vs. 13-18), we can see what Paul is trying to say. He gave inspired comfort to the Thessalonians concerning the Christians who had died (vs. 13, 18). He assured them that the resurrection of those asleep in Jesus was as sure as the resurrection of Jesus Himself (v. 14). He gave them God's Word that those living in Christ at that time would not prevent those that had already died (v. 15). He then closes this section by explaining how Christ would return from Heaven: With a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God. Before we rise to meet Him in the air, however, the dead in Christ will be raised (v. 16-17). Note though, the dead outside of Christ are absent in this passage. Acts 24:15 supplements this passage and tells us that BOTH the just and unjust will be raised. Nothing again is mentioned of different times.
       The Apostles also had some problems understanding what and when the Day of the Lord was. In Matthew chapter 24, they were pressing Jesus as to when these events would take place. Here, Jesus speaks of a tribulation the likes of which the world had never seen, but it was one that the APOSTLES would go through (Matt. 24:1-22), not future man. These events did in fact happen, just as Christ prophesied. All the Apostles but one, were killed in horrible fashion, and there were countless different persecutions of Christians around the world at different times in history, killing countless faithful Christians. Just read Fox's Book of Martyr's (which is free for e-readers) to see the horrible events that happened. Jesus also mentions the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, which many believe will take place in the future, but actually happened in A.D. 70 by the Romans. The faithful fled into the mountains, just as Jesus foresaw. It is important to read this passage, because you can easily see that Jesus is using the words 'you' and 'ye' when speaking to the Apostles. It would happen to them in their 'generation' (Matt. 24:34).
       Many people are also obsessed, for lack of a better word, in looking for supposed signs that would happen before the Day of the Lord, often using Matthew chapter 24. "When shall these things be?" (Matt. 24:1-3, Mark 13:4, Luke 21:7). This was answered by Jesus in Matthew 12:39 when He said, "An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall be NO sign given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet." How much clearer can the Lord be? He will return 'like a thief in the night', or as He said in Matthew 24:50, "the Lord of that servant shall come in a day when he expecteth not, in an hour when he knoweth not." How could this possibly be true if we have signs telling us it is coming? God is true to His Word.
       So, what exactly will happen on the Day of the Lord? He will return as promised (John 14:1-3). The resurrection will happen on that day (John 6:44). The Thessalonians were promised this (1 Thess. 4:13-18). Both the righteous and unrighteous would be raised at the same time (John 5:28-29). The living would be changed (1 Cor. 15:34-58). The judgment of the world will happen, as appointed by God (Heb. 9:27, Acts 17:30-31). Christ will be the judge (Acts 17:31). The Word of God will be the standard (John 12:48, Rev. 20:11-15). All nations will be assembled (Matt. 25:31-46). Each will be judged according to the deeds done in the body (2 Cor. 5:10). The righteous will be rewarded (Matt. 25:34, 2 Cor. 5:10). The wicked will be condemned (Matt. 13:40-42, 25:41, 2 Thess. 1:7-9, Rev. 20:15, 21:8). Finally, the earth will be burned up (2 Pet. 3:10). The Bible shows us in all these different passages, that all of these events will take place on the same day.
       The Day of the Lord will be the last day in history of man. It will be a wonderful day for the faithful, and terrible indeed for the unrighteous. When this day happens, there will be no second chances for man, as some religious leaders and books such as the Left Behind series try to claim. I implore all of you who have taken the time to read this post (and I thank you for this) to not put your souls on the line for what others have said to you, but to study ALL that God has told us, and to believe and trust in Him, to obey His loving commands. We all know that man quite often makes mistakes and gets things wrong, but God can never be wrong nor steer us in the wrong direction. Finally, it so very important to be prepared for that final day, for we do not know when it will happen, or when we will leave this life. Once the we do, or the Day of the Lord occurs, it will be too late.